Today I’m running. I’m not running away from a monster. I’m not running to save someone from a burning building. No, I’m just running.

Some days I practice down at the fighters training hall. Other days I work on learning obscure languages at the library. Smithing, archery, picking herbs are all things that I train in. You could say I’m a professional at practicing.

I’m getting a bit winded, hungry, and thirsty. Time to take a break and get something to eat. There’s a dwarven place nearby that I like. People have been giving me odd looks for the last 15 minutes. I wonder what that’s about.

I grab a table at Grey Stone Smasher’s Stout and Trout.

“I’ll have a stout, burger, and fries,” I told Shirley the serving wench. I know that it’s Shirley because of the name floating over her head.

“I don’t know what a burger and fries are. We serve stout and trout here.” Shirley stood waiting patiently for a valid order.

“I’ll have a stout and trout then.”

“Here you go.” Shirley put my order on the table, took my money, and then left to serve her next customer.

I had a bit of a start as I realized that I had no idea where the plate came from. She wasn’t holding it walking up to my table. It’s been a strange day. Mornings are fine, though a lot of the time I can’t remember going to bed. I just lose track of things and wake up in the morning. I wonder if that’s normal.

After finishing my meal I pull out my to-do list. Running: check. Next up is… sneaking? I’ll come back to that one tonight. More fighting practice — that sounds good. Off to the fighter hall. I briefly wonder when I write all these lists as I have no memory of ever writing one. Go figure.

I warm up on fighting dummies with a wooden practice sword. Whack, Whack, Whack. Bored now.

I grab some training armor and get into line for sparring practice. I count off the pairs and decide to chat with my partner who happens to be in front of me.

“Hey Thagnar, how’s your day going?”

Thagnar started and stared at me as if he’d seen a ghost.

“I’m fine. Hey Hashi, how did you hack your tag to get it to say ‘away’? Is the system glitching again?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t know that I was marked away.”

I have no clue about what he’s talking about. I see away next to about 20% of people's names every day but other than them being a bit aloof and quiet, they seem like normal people to me. I have to wonder if that means people are being contemplative. I have a decent match with Thagnar and head out.

I’m walking to the market for crafting supplies when my awareness abruptly stops.

I had a strangely vivid dream.

I was lying in a bed in a dark room. The bed was soft.

All I could see were 5 whirling blades suspended over my body. I couldn’t move at all. The blades were moving so fast I could feel a breeze coming from them.

I was terrified.

I couldn’t make a sound.

I silently prayed: will someone please help me!

I woke up, got out of bed, put on clothes and then got out my to-do list. I’m feeling freaked out. That was scary.

I lost track of yesterday while heading to get crafting supplies.

Normal.

Being paralyzed below a whirling death trap before waking up.

Definitely a novel experience.

I almost never have novel experiences. Well, I’m definitely alert. I think I’ll skip the wake-me-up at breakfast this morning.

Hopefully, today will go better.

I wish I could get rid of the (away) over my head so people would stop looking at me funny. The system silently adjusted Hashi(away) to Hashi.

Ah, my to-do list.

I skip the meal that comes with my room and I pull out some rations from my bag after leaving the inn. I often wake up in inns but never remember paying for the rooms. I wonder if other people have memory issues late in the day. Perhaps I’ll visit a medical priest later. Glancing at my list I see practicing making potions is first up.

A lot of people are waving and greeting me today. I wave back and mimic some of the phrases that I’ve heard.

“Hi.”

“Good day.”

“Nice armor.”

I say “good luck with the fishing” to a human in obvious fishing gear.

The people in town are really friendly today. Maybe it’s a holiday.

I pick up supplies from several shops and then rent a potion stand at an alchemist’s shop. I spend several hours making a variety of potions, which I then sell to the alchemist. While I was working I kept hearing this “ding” sound. I tried to find out where the sound was coming from to no avail. When I asked the alchemist about it, he said that he heard nothing. I thanked him and left the shop.

And then nothingness hit again.

I’m sitting in a padded chair at one side of a crowded room. Not crowded with people, but crowded with stuff.

I can’t move my body again. I am glad that I can move my eyes.

The room is lit and the light is coming from a glowing ball just below another spinning blade trap. At least I’m not below it this time.

As I sit here stuck to a comfortable chair I imagine that a black armored anti-paladin will charge in soon and threaten to torture me so I will give up state secrets. I don’t know what a state is nor do I have any secrets. Maybe he’ll want to see my to-do list. I see one of my fingers twitch and then blackness.